I-192 Waiver Approved in 3 Months

Our office recently received notice of approval of a Form I-192 waiver application that was filed on behalf of a Canadian client who required this waiver due to an eight (8) year old conviction for possession of marijuana.  

The waiver was approved approximately three (3) months after filing with U.S Customs and Border Protection officials.  This was our client’s third waiver application and approval.  The first waiver was issued for a period of one (1) year, the second waiver issued for a period of three (3) years, and the current waiver issued for a period of five (5) years, which is the maximum validity period for these types of waivers.

Although our client has a criminal record, he also has several important reasons for seeking entry to the U.S., including the need to travel to worksites for his employer and to attend his children’s sporting events.  As evidenced by these approvals, CBP agrees that these significant reasons for seeking entry to the U.S. outweigh the seriousness of the criminal violation. 

CBP Policy Change Regarding Deferred Inspection of Returning Residents

CBP recently confirmed that, as of October 1, 2009, there is a greater risk that returning lawful permanent residents (“LPR”) of the United States with criminal convictions will be issued a Notice to Appear (“NTA”) at the Port of Entry, rather than at a deferred inspection at a later date.  The NTA has the effect of commencing removal proceedings before a U.S. Immigration Judge. 

Prior to this change in policy, most returning residents with criminal convictions were being granted deferred inspections.  CBP has changed this policy due to a growing number of individuals failing to appear for their deferred inspections.  

CBP also confirmed that there is an increased likelihood that returning LPRs with criminal convictions will be detained upon their application for admission at a Port of Entry.  Whether an LPR is detained will depend on several factors, including the nature of the conviction, CBP staffing, and available detention bedspace, among other factors.  CBP confirms that deferred inspection remains an available option to officers inspecting a returning LPR with a criminal conviction.

I-192 Waiver Application Re-Opened and Approved for Five Years

A client recently came to our office after having his Form I-192, Application for Advance Permission to Enter as a Nonimmigrant, denied.  This particular client had previously applied for, and received, two (2) of these nonimmigrant waivers. He requires a waiver due to a theft conviction from over 15 years ago. 

Our client’s previous two (2) waivers were issued prior to the formation of the Admissibility Review Office (“ARO”), which is part of U.S. Customs and Border Protection (“CBP”).  Currently, all Forms I-192 are sent to the ARO for adjudication. 

The most recent waiver application (Form I-192) was submitted by our client over one year ago at a land border port of entry, which then forwards all Forms I-192 to the ARO.  Six (6) months later, our client received a request for additional evidence (“RFE”) from the ARO requesting specific documentation from the client to supplement his waiver application.

Our client, still acting without a lawyer, complied with the ARO instructions and submitted the additional evidence to CBP through a U.S. land border port of entry – the same port of entry where he submitted his Form I-192 six (6) months earlier.  Fortunately, our client saved a copy of what he submitted to CBP at the border, together with a copy of the form completed by the CBP officer on that date.  These copies were extremely useful when our client came to us after receiving a waiver denial letter from the ARO.  It turned out that the documents submitted by our client were lost somewhere between the port of and entry and the ARO.  When the ARO never received the requested documents, they issued a decision denying the waiver application.

By regulation [8 C.F.R. § 103.5], individuals have 30 days following a waiver denial to submit a Motion to Reopen and/or Reconsider the decision.  Due to delays experienced by Canadian mail, our client did not receive the denial letter for almost three (3) weeks following issuance, leaving him almost no time to submit a Motion to Reopen and/or Reconsider.  It was shortly after this 30-day period expired that he finally contacted our office for legal assistance.

With the documentary evidence that our client saved, we prepared a persuasive Motion to Reopen the denial decision.  We were also able to convince the ARO to accept the motion after the expiration of the 30-day filing deadline, in light of the delays often experienced by the Canadian post.  The ARO then granted the Motion to Reopen and granted our client’s nonimmigrant waiver application (Form I-192) within one week of receipt of our motion.

The waiver was granted for a period of five (5) years from the date of approval, which allowed our client to enter the U.S. immediately to visit with children and grandchildren in the U.S.

I-192 Waiver Approved

We recently received notice from the Admissibility Review Office (“ARO”) that our client’s nonimmigrant waiver application (Form I-192) was approved for a period of one year.  This was our client’s first waiver application that was required to overcome inadmissibility under INA § 212(a)(9)(B)(i)(II) for a previous period of unlawful presence in the United States. 

This waiver application (Form I-192) remained pending at the ARO for only four (4) months.  Our client had no criminal arrests or convictions anywhere in the world.  He sought entry to the U.S. mainly for business purposes, including transit through U.S airports, and also so that he could visit with family members residing in the United States. 

Because our client only faces a 10-year bar for unlawful presence, he will no longer require advance permission to enter the U.S. as a nonimmigrant (Form I-192) until the 10-year period expires.

B1/B2 Visa Issued Together with Nonimmigrant Waiver & Permission to Reapply

We recently had a client issued a B1/B2 visa together with a nonimmigrant waiver pursuant to INA § 212(d)(3)(A)(i) and permission to reapply for admission under INA § 212(a)(9)(A)(iii).  The § 212(d)(3) waiver was needed to overcome inadmissibility under INA § 212(a)(2)(I)(ii) based on a conviction for money laundering that occurred over 10 years ago.  Our client also required permission to reapply for admission under INA § 212(a)(9)(A)(iii) due to inadmissibility under INA § 212(a)(9)(A)(i) as an alien previously deported who was convicted of an aggravated felony.

The amount of money involved in the underlying laundering incident was in excess of $15,000.00 US.  Despite the severity of the crime involved, our client had strong equities, both business and personal, that we presented in the form of a memorandum of law with supporting documentation.  Under the Matter of Hranka standard, which requires the consideration of three (3) factors [(1) risk of harm to U.S. society; (2) seriousness of criminal and/or immigration law violations; and (3) the nature of reasons for seeking entry to the U.S.] in adjudication of INA § 212(d)(3) waiver cases, our client was issued a waiver of inadmissibility for a period of one (1) year. 

The visa application was presented to the U.S. Consulate together with the nonimmigrant waiver package and the application for permission to reapply for admission.  On the date of interview, the Consular officer informed our client of his intent to recommend the waiver application for approval.  Only seven (7) days later, our client received notice that the waiver was granted and was instructed to submit his passport to the Consulate.  Only six (6) days after submitting the passport, it was returned to our client with a B1/B2 visa and waiver endorsement, as well as permission to reapply for admission.  The visa and waiver were issued for a validity period of one year. 

Our client, unable to travel to the U.S. for over 10 years, can now enter the United States for both business and/or pleasure.